What our Guests said ...

The service is impeccable, value for money great, rooms beautiful, food lovely.

Welgelegen Manor is an amazing getaway for a couple (or individual) who wishes to escape the city and take a breathe of country air.

Lovely hide away. We will come again.

What an amazing weekend… staff is outstanding.

Beautiful house with beautiful spacious rooms, beautiful garden, relaxing atmosphere, the staff is efficient and friendly and the food is out of this world. I would recommend Welgelegen Manor to everyone who needs some time out and relaxation.

Music @ Welgelegen

Welgelegen in conjunction with Steinway Artist Charl du Plessis are proud to present a new series of music concerts for music lovers and visitors to Welgelegen, which is a world renown boutique hotel and manor house.

Acclaimed Steinway pianist Charl du Plessis, also known as Africa’s Piano Man, blends music ranging from baroque to pop, from classical to jazz, with the emphasis on making music fun, giving it that X-factor. The Charl du Plessis Trio consists of Charl piano, Werner Spies double bass and bass guitar and Peter Auret drummer. The trio.

Drummer Peter Auret, is largely a self-taught musician. His musical journey started at high school as a member a high school rock band, as well as playing in his school’s marching band. Peter had decided to study engineering, however, like all great musicians, his love of music consumed him, it became a full time commitment, that allowed him to experiment with Jazz, Afro Jazz, Fusion. Polish pianist, Marcin Wasilewski, American Saxophonist, Brandford Marsalis, and rock guitarist, turned R&B Saxophonist Michael Brecker had a tremendous influence on his music, as they all shared the same vision: As jazz musicians they never saw rock music as an enemy but as a viable musical option that would masterfully conjure up a sense of divine, cosmic journey of sound.

Music @ Welgelegen will have you, our guests, wishing time would stop in its tracks, as every time you hear the music played, you will want to return to our evening of musical magic. The talented pianist Christopher Duigan’s love of romanticism of complex piano pieces, will be like your memories of your first love that felt like your true love.

Choral conductor Michael Barrett, who is recognized nationally and international, as testimony to his talent, his latest accolade was wining the Grand Prix of Nations contest in Latvia 2018. He founded the adult choir, The Chamber Singers in 2012 and will be performing with the Chamber Singers and Charl du Plessis for an evening of music for your soul, with a balance between technical proficiency and passion in making music come alive.

The 2018/19 season will run from September to March with three debut programmes exclusively tailored for Music @ Welgelegen.

Bookings for these concerts can be made at gm@welgelegenmanor.co.za

Concert 1

Charl du Plessis Trio plays Cole Porter – 15th September 2018

The Charl du Plessis Trio start their new musical journey at Welgelegen with the music of Cole Porter. This legend of songwriting has been the favourite composer of many vocalists. Now in the hands of these crossover masters songs like Love for Sale, Let’s Fall in Love, Night & Day and I Get a Kick Out of You are rediscovered and will receive the signature trio treatment. Guest will be pampered to an exclusive historical venue of food served at Cole Porter’s Wedding Anniversary dinner at New York’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

The Charl du Plessis Trio consists of Steinway Artist Charl du Plessis (piano), Werner Spies (bass) and Peter Auret (drums) and have been awarded two SAMA, a Ghoema, and Fiësta Award for various recordings and have performed at major festivals in Europe and Asia. The trio has recorded 7 albums and are Claves Recording Artists.

Concert 2

Swinging Christmas Carols – 8th December 2018

Charl du Plessis is joined world-renowned choir conductor Michael Barrett for a special Christmas concert. Swinging Christmas Carols features the Festival Chamber Choir specifically singing traditional Christmas music and hymns. Well knows tunes for the Holidays get the suave jazz treatment from Du Plessis combined with the familiarity of melodies like “White Christmas”, “Adeste Fideles” and “Panis Angelicus”.

Michael Barrett is South Africa’s leading choir director with a vision beyond anything seen before in SA. His projects involving mass choirs, speciality conducting clinics and community driven projects like Capitol Singers, TUKS Camarata and his involvement with the World Choir Games held in Pretoria in July 2018 has established him as one of the leading choir conductors.

Concert 3

Christopher Duigan in Recital – 16th March 2019

Pianist, Christopher Duigan, performs the music of French-Polish pianist and composer, Frédéric Chopin in a special recital at Welgelegen. This programme will include a representative selection of the composer’s music: The Ballade No 1, Scherzo No.2 plus Nocturnes, Etudes, Mazurkas and Waltzes. In this special presentation Duigan will also be offering insight he gained into Chopin’s life and his music while on a trip to Warsaw, Poland and the Chopin Museum in 2015.

Duigan, a Steinway Artist is widely regarded as one of South Africa’’s leading concert pianists and has devoted much time to the study and performance of Chopin’s music in his professional career over the last 25 years. He was invited to give two recitals of Chopin’s music at the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown in 2010 on the 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth. Much of the music performed in these concerts is on the CD ‘Christopher Duigan plays Chopin’ released in November 2016. Signed CDs will be available at this performance.